How to Naturally Treat Pests on Plants

Whether you're trying to grow an organic garden or don't feel comfortable using insecticides on houseplants, controlling insects and other pests without resorting to chemicals can be tricky. However, natural strategies for preventing and eliminating pests are often successful, and avoiding insecticides lets your garden develop a population of beneficial insects such as spiders and ladybugs. Monitoring your plants closely and removing insects quickly keeps infestations from becoming too large and spreading to other plants.

Things You'll Need

• Syringe
• Garden hose
• Traps
• Biological control organisms

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Instructions

1. • 1

     Spray plants with water to dislodge aphids, spider mites, thrips and other small pests. Use a syringe on small houseplants and a garden hose on larger plants.

   • 2

     Pick off larger pests, such as mealybugs and scale insects, by hand.

   • 3

     Catch pests with traps, such as sticky paper or flat boards placed on the soil. Empty traps regularly.

   • 4

     Release biological control organisms into your garden. You can order these from a specialty garden supplier. For example, some species of ladybugs eat mealybugs and certain species of mites eat spider mites.